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I said I declined the fancy college. I'm not rich at all, it was too much money to live in London and it wasn't a course I particularly liked after I looked at it in depth.

Anyway, I am glad you managed to get your opinion out. It is way too late at night for me to reply anymore.

Ooooooooooookaaaaaaaaaaaaaay... So, I thought I'd at least take a peek before I went and spoiled myself rotten. I almost feel bad about bringing up the subject--this got way out of hand (Almost, mind you. Nothing is really going to make me super-upset today; just sayin').

Ahem. Back on business.

Change is good. As much as it can bum you out as a writer, sometimes. I had a whole side-story/mini-plot in my work at one time, and I have to say I was in love with it. I adored every second of it. I loved the characters involved, and I loved what it added to the story.

But it wasn't necessary.

And so it was cut.

And so I cried.

[/crappy emo poetry]

I had to rework several parts of the story that worked off of the parts I had cut, but it's so much smoother now.

In terms of changing a character, well, I haven't had that issue yet. I'm certain I'd have a good deal of trouble with it, though, were I asked to change someone. I mean, little things, sure, I could change no problem, but motivation, perspective, mannerisms and such... I'd be a bit on the defensive, I'll admit it.

But I also thinks that comes from having worked with these guys for a decade or so.

I suppose, though, if I absolutely had to in order to make the characters more believable and the story better, I'd do it... grudgingly.

Of course, even if I were to change the character, it would still be mine. Changing one action early on could easily make later changes true to character, too, so in a sense it's not really changing the character. At least not in the huge major 'this is not my character anymore' way.

I hope I don't flood the forum with too many topics. I'm sort of using the flinging spaghetti method--flinging out some thoughts and seeing what sticks/gets some interesting talk going. XD


This is largely how I feel about it. Or at least, I've never, ever felt "this isn't my character anymore." Rather, "this character makes so much more sense/fits better in the story/is working better now for X reason."

I wonder if part of the differences in opinions/approaches has to do with what comes first-- I know some people start with a character and some start with a plot and some start with a combination of both or even just a single detail that sparks something. Maybe that's fodder for another discussion at some point.

Late response, but that's kind of awesome. XD

In other news, I'm ready for August to be over. It's been a rough month, for many reasons. I think September will be better, and hopefully it will bring some good news. I'll be happy to get good news in any form... maybe a nice response to the MG on submission? Maybe some awesome revision notes for my YA? Maybe knowing the other YA can be submitted soon? Any or all of these would be nice during September.

For now, I'm sitting and thinking about my plot. This latest book is a fairy tale retelling for young adults. At the same time, I'm also working on the middle grade I started last month, but after talking to my husband and doing some reading to locate similar books, I think the current age range is too high. The story is just better suited to a different type of book. It's nice to have that figured out now. It also means it will be even shorter--but probably more difficult to write because I've never written a book for this age range before. Think Dragon Slayer's Academy--they're about 10k words long. So, shorter, but it will probably take a while to write because of figuring it out as I go.

The fairy tale retelling is coming along, though. Well, not word count yet, but the outline is becoming more useful. It's based on The Little Mermaid. I always wanted to work with that story, so now I am. I think it will be fun. Hopefully it's also marketable, but I am writing it regardless and we'll see what happens.

I was reading random blogs today and came across this post on Nathan Bransford's blog: The Pernicious Momentum of First Ideas (Nathan is a literary agent at Curtis Brown, and he has also recently sold his first novel.)

I thought he made some interesting points about getting something set in your mind when you start a project, and then being resistant to change later.



This was interesting to read, because it's very similar to how I work. I mean, yes, maybe your first idea will end up being the best idea. But you never know unless you give the newer ideas a shot. It can be tough to let go of something that's been part of the book from the beginning... but that's not a good enough reason to keep it. And yes, sometimes my stories changed a lot. But they were still my stories, still stories I wanted to tell. And at least for me, they were always 100x better.

I got a revision letter from an editor once that suggested cutting a point of view from my book. She was right, and the scenes got slashed. She also had concerns about the ending of the book, so the end got completely rewritten. Those were just two of the points she made, but she was absolutely right. I love what the book has become, and her comments inspired even bigger changes that weren't even mentioned (but which I think worked out fabulously--for example, I let go of my original idea for the character and softened her, and she works now). I love what the book has become. Even though she did not ultimately accept it, I'm glad I'm able to let go of my first ideas when needed. Someone out there will connect with this book someday. I believe in it, thanks to her. And the old version? Had some good ideas, but really needed to lose a few and gain some better ones.

Now, there are definitely ideas I would want to keep regardless. There are some things I would be very resistant to removing. But ultimately, it depends.

Sometimes your first idea/first instinct is on the mark. Sometimes it's not.

And sometimes it's on the mark, but you haven't found the right way to use it yet.

That's so spot on. I can't begin to describe how adamant I was about some of my concepts early on. It took a lot to force myself to change them, but once I did, it just rolled. Usually. Sometimes it didn't and I hated what it became.

But you always get at least a new idea or two when you rework stuff and move it around.

Current motivation to write=0

I'm thinking of scrapping my goals and just taking a break from writing for another week or two. I don't have a lot of motivation right now because I'm caught up in waiting. Waiting to hear news on submissions, waiting for another book to be sent out, waiting for revision notes on the new book, waiting to hear back on my job applications. All of these things take time, which is fine, but especially with the writing stuff--it feels like piling more writing on top of everything is just going to mean more waiting once a new book is done. xd I know that's a little silly, but that's why I think taking a week or two off will help me recharge. Maybe I'll be able to distract myself with other things. I think I'd be feeling better about it all if I could find a job, but that's being difficult.

That's the plan, anyway. This weekend I'll be watching Vampire Diaries, going to the bookstore, and going to see Easy A. Maybe by next week I'll feel better.

Nathan pretty much suggests something I do anyway. And he is right. Some things are going to change, be it a character, a plot point, or even the whole story.

Also, I apparently missed the drama with 11inda and changing your work. I just have this to say:

-I have changed my whole story two or three times based on feedback from good friends. This includes completely re-working a beloved character. Honestly, she works better in her new form. He initial character stayed the same; the changes simply made her easier to relate to and less angsty.
-I would re-write a story a hundred times to make it work if someone gave me a good reason to change something. No, it will never be perfect, but it will be much better than it would have been had I just worked on it entirely alone.

Get your break. Sometimes, the best way to focus on a work is to ignore it and come back later.

I have considered seeing Easy A, though I may wait for the dollar theater for it.